The British soprano Gemma Summerfield, age 31, has won the First Prize at the 59th edition of the Tenor Viñas International Singing Contest. Summerfield graduated in 2016 from the Royal College of Music International Opera Studio and has continued to work in close collaboration with British singer Rosa Mannion. Among the notable roles she has played are Mimì (La bohème, Northern Ireland Opera), Nanetta (Falstaff, Scottish Opera), Pamina (The Magic Flute, Glyndebourne & Scottish Opera), Paula Jordan (Dinner at Eight, Wexford Festival Opera) Rodelinda (Rodelinda, cover, English National Opera) Michal (Saul, cover, Glyndebourne Festival Opera), Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel) Rosalinde (Die Fledermaus), Ginevra (Ariodante) and Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni). Three years ago, the British soprano received the First Prize at the Concorso Lirico Internazionale de Portofino.

The Second Prize went to the French mezzo-soprano Eugénie Joneau, 26 years old. The South Korean tenor Seok Jong Baek, 35 years old, won the Third Prize. The official awards have been completed with the Russian bass Aleksei Kulagin (Fourth Prize), the U.S. baritone Blake Denson (Fifth Prize) and the Italian tenor Paride Cataldo (Sixth Prize).

All of them were among the 16 performers from 8 countries who performed in the final round of the competition, which took place this Friday at the Gran Teatre del Liceu. Once the performances were over, the jury made the deliberation and announced the winners in a verdict that was broadcasted online. To complete the evening, the Spanish mezzo-soprano Carmen Artaza, winner of the past edition, gave a recital on the same stage.

The international jury was presided by the Liceu’s Artistic Director, Víctor Garcia de Gomar, and also integrated by: Julien Benhamou, artistic consultant and Casting Director of the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence; Alessandro Galoppini, Casting Director of the Teatro alla Scala in Milan; Tobias Hasan, Director of the Staatsoper Unter der Linden in Berlin; Paul Hopper, assistant to the Artistic Administrator of the Metropolitan Opera House in New York; Peter Mario Katona, Director of Casting at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London; Simon Lepper, pianist; Joan Matabosch, Artistic Director of the Teatro Real in Madrid; Nelly Miricioiu, soprano (who won the Competition in 1975); Christian Schirm, Artistic Director of the Académie de l'Opéra de Paris; and Ludmila Talikova, Director of the Opera Company of the Bolshoi Theatre of Russia in Moscow.